I have ended several of the past few years thankful that that year was over and hoping that the next one would be better. Perhaps that is why I like watching old westerns on the television as much as I do. One of my favorites is Gunsmoke with Marshal Dillon, Doc Adams, Miss Kitty and various other “sidekicks”. The principal reasons for liking this series are: there were 635 episodes (rarely see a repeat and if I do I can stay excited because I can’t remember how it ended last time), there is never a foul-mouthed character (even drunks spill off complete sentences without vulgarity), the replays are free on most channels (cheap entertainment for me and the dog), and I can go to sleep during one episode and wake up in another without missing key parts of the plot (good always prevails). For purposes of this letter, each episode is not as important but that I am amazed at the years between episode 1 (Sept. 10, 1955) and the last one on March 31, 1975. As the Police Chaplain at my brother-in-law’s funeral put it, “life is not the birth date or the endpoint: it is what happens if the hyphen between those dates.”

This is all relevant to 2025 because of the series that Pastor Michael has presented on Faith over the past few months. From Hebrews 11 we can clearly see that what biblical characters did based on their Faith in God is all that is considered mentionable in their New Testament “legacy”, no matter how many chapters or generations their lives covered in the Old Testament. And, most recently, the Book of James is not a book on how to do life, but a challenge to grow in our relationships by asking why or how our works are viewed by our Heavenly Father. I must say, and I hope each of you can understand and agree, that these series make me consider each thought, action, or the whole day as a part of my story that shows my relationship with Jesus. Just like my old westerns, God wins in the end, time is limited for me as a principal character in the saga, and some people will only have limited episodes to see my whole story. May we all consider our relationship with Jesus as we emphasize the hyphen between birth and passing.

Consider your Opportunities to Serve.
David Bishop